Netanyahu Poised to Remain Israel’s Caretaker PM Amid Unexpected Voter Support
Benjamin Netanyahu appeared poised to stay as caretaker prime minister after his right‑wing bloc received strong support from Jewish voters, leaving his opposition with little realistic chance of removing him, even though his party’s parliamentary majority was diminished.
As of Wednesday, when nearly 86 percent of the vote count was in, Israeli broadcasters projected that Netanyahu’s coalition of right‑wing, far‑right and ultra‑orthodox parties would secure 53 of the 120 Knesset seats, comfortably surpassing the 48 seats expected for opposition leader Gadi Eisenkot.
Projections indicated that Arab Israeli parties would capture an unprecedented 19 seats in the Knesset, narrowing Eisenkot’s prospects for governing and fueling a reliance on the broader Arab electorate that many Jewish political leaders find unwilling to support.